Dictionary

Comorbidity - In medicine, comorbidity is the presence of one or more additional disorders (or diseases) co-occurring with a primary disease or disorder; or the effect of such additional disorders or diseases.

Double Blind Protocol - In a double-blind experiment, neither the participants nor the researchers know which participants belong to the control group, as opposed to the test group. Only after all data have been recorded (and in some cases, analyzed) do the researchers learn which participants were which.

DX - abbreviation for diagnosis.

Fibro Fog - The common term for the cognitive dysfunction associated with fibromyalgia. Comes from the feeling that everything you think is distorted by a kind of fog, of how memory and perception is all 'blurry'

'Flare' or 'Fibro Flare' - A sudden worsening of symptoms. Can be caused by any number of things, including weather changes, overexertion, medications, the price of eggs in China etc.

Hyperalgesia - is an increased sensitivity to pain, which may be caused by damage to nociceptors (sensory nerve cells) or peripheral nerves. Temporary increased sensitivity to pain also occurs as part of sickness behavior, the evolved response to infection.

IBS - Usually Irritable Bowel Syndrome, but can be Irritable Bladder Syndrome

Myofascial Pain – (not facial) a syndrome characterised by chronic pain caused by multiple trigger points. Fascia are connective tissue structures that surround muscles, blood vessels and nerves, binding them together. They are similar to ligaments and tendons. The main symptoms are referred pain, limited range of motion and sleep disturbance.

Neuropathic Pain - pain resulting from damage, disease or illness to the somatosensory (touch sensation) system. It is often pain that is caused by stimuli that aren't normally painful. It can be continuous of episodic (comes and goes). Sensations may feel like general pain, electric-shock like pain, pins and needles, numbness, itching, burning, tingling etc. Pain meds don't usually help much as they normally work on damaged or inflamed tissue, and in neuropathic pain that damage is not usually present.

Pacing - rationing your energy expenditure to ensure that you have enough to last the whole day. How important an event is can mean that you are prepared to expend more energy on it, so you will have to pace yourself leading up to that event to make sure can enjoy it the most.

Pain Diary - a daily diary where you give a score out of ten for the intensity of your pain, as well as anything that you have done that you think may have attributed to that pain. Foods, exercise, changes in medications, stress, etc

Restless Leg Syndrome – (RLS) is a neurological disorder characterized by an irresistible urge to move one's body to stop uncomfortable or odd sensations. It most commonly affects the legs, but can affect the arms, torso, and even phantom limbs. Moving the affected body part modulates the sensations, providing temporary relief.

Spoon Theory - The Spoon Theory is one way of describing how fibro patients are affected by their lack of energy. It talks about how we have far fewer 'spoonfuls' of energy than others, and how we have to be careful how we use them.

Spoony - someone who likes and prescribes to the 'Spoon Theory'.

Supplement – vitamins and minerals taken to supplement diet. Can be used to boost intake, or replace missed intake from natural food sources. Also to replace vitamins and minerals lost through illness.

Trigger - something that causes a worsening of symptoms.

Tender Points – these are the 18 specific points on the body where a fibromyalgia patient feels pain sensitivity. One diagnostic 'rule' is that you have to be experiencing pain in more than 10 of these sites to have fibromyalgia.

TMJ – the temporomandibular joints are where the jaw attaches to the skull. TMJ disorder is where there are 'problems' with the muscles, tendons, and so on these joints. It can be very painful.

Trigger Points - are like nodules of knots in muscles that when pushed, cause pain in another part of the body. Referred pain. Can also cause twitches, sensations like an electric shock, spasms etc.